Carpet, Rug, & Furniture Cleaning Blog | Five Step Carpet Care

How to Clean a Futon Mattress

July 8, 2019/in How To /by Star

Wondering how to clean a futon mattress? Or how about maintaining your futon mattress to keep it looking clean, smelling fresh, and to extend its usefulness?

Futons are a great, versatile furniture choice, especially for tight spaces and multi-purpose rooms. Because many people use their futons both as sofas and beds, they can get dirty and worn more quickly than other pieces of furniture. Use these six simple steps to get your futon mattress clean and keep it that way!

Photo by Filios Sazeides

Rotate regularly- Rotating your futon mattress helps keep from collecting dust and cobwebs on the bottom. It also prevents the mattress from becoming misshapen from overuse on one side. You should turn your futon mattress over about once a month to extend its life.
Freshen- Once every two or three months, take the cover or bedding off of the futon mattress and allow it to air out, using fans for extra air circulation. You can also deodorize your mattress at this time by sprinkling baking soda on the surface, letting it sit for an hour, and then vacuuming.
Vacuum- To give your mattress a thorough cleaning, start by rotating and/or airing it out, then vacuum it to remove lint, dead skin, and pet hair.
Spot Clean- If you have an accidental spill and get a stain on your futon mattress, try to tackle it quickly—before the stain dries, if possible. You can use a small bowl of water with just a drop or two of liquid dishwashing soap to remove most types of stains. After the stain is removed, be sure to sponge the area with clear water to get rid of any soap residue. Then blot dry with a clean cloth or towel.
Clean and Maintain the Frame- Your futon frame may be made of wood or metal. Either way, to keep your futon looking its best, you should dust the frame every month or so, paying special attention to the parts beneath the futon mattress, where cobwebs and dust bunnies tend to gather. Take the time to tighten any loose screws while you’re at it. If you have a wooden frame, you might want to oil the wood.
Protect Your Futon Mattress- The best investment you can make to extend the life of your futon mattress is to purchase a quality futon cover. Keeping the mattress covered will prevent dirt, crumbs, and spills from reaching the mattress itself. Futon covers are thick and durable, and they zipper up one side to make taking them off and putting them back on easy. They are usually machine washable. You should launder your futon cover about once a month if you use the futon frequently.
Professional Cleaning- If your futon mattress has stains that won’t come out with regular spot cleaning, or if it has been sitting for awhile in a dank or musty environment, you might want to consider having it professionally cleaned. A professional upholstery cleaner will come to your home and clean the futon for you. With their specialized equipment, they are sure to get it much cleaner than you could do yourself.

If you live in the Asheville, NC area and are in need of friendly, professional upholstery cleaners for your futon or any other furniture, call Five Step Carpet Care at 828.237.3237 today or get in touch using our contact form.

Why Does My Wool Rug Smell?

June 12, 2019/in Rug Cleaning /by Star

Since wool comes from sheep fibers, sometimes wool rugs can take on an unpleasant smell when exposed to water or moisture. The odor is reminiscent of wet dog or barnyard animals, and when you’ve invested a bit of money into your wool rug, a smell like that can be alarming!

But not to worry. There are simple methods you can use to get the wet animal smell out of your wool rugs.

The most important thing to do is make sure the rug is completely dry. To avoid a permanent odor problem, you’ll want to act as soon as you notice the smell.

Hanging the rug outside on a clothesline in direct sunlight should do the trick. It can take several days for a rug that has gotten very wet to dry out completely. Be sure to bring it in at night to prevent it from collecting dew and compounding the problem. Alternate the side that faces out in order to give both sides of the rug a chance to dry.

If you live in a region with a very wet or humid climate, hanging your rug outside might not be possible. Instead, you can try hanging it up indoors and setting a fan up to blow in the direction of the rug until all the moisture is gone.

Whether you dry the wool rug outdoors or indoors, when it’s done drying sprinkle a liberal amount of baking soda on it. Let the baking soda sit for at least an hour and then vacuum it up. Repeat this process on the other side of the rug.

If the unpleasant odor persists, there is still hope! Call a professional rug cleaning service to take care of the problem. Customers in the Asheville, NC area will find Five Step Carpet Care’s rug cleaning service to be affordable and effective. We offer convenient pick-up and delivery, or you can drop your rug off at our facility for cleaning. Your wool rug will come back to you looking and smelling like new.

You can also check out some of our before-and-after photos.

Give Five Step a call at 828.237.3237 or drop us a line for more info.

How to Get Dents Out Of Carpets

June 4, 2019/in Carpet Care /by Star

Rearranging your living room only to find unsightly dents in your carpet? Not a problem. Divots left behind in your carpet by pieces of furniture can easily be removed and fluffed out with these simple steps.

Lay a damp towel over the dent.
Run an iron over the towel on medium heat, checking periodically to see if the carpet fibers beneath have started to rise. The heat of the iron should gradually cause the fibers to spring back to their original shape.
Leave the towel on top of the dent until completely dry.
Finally, vacuum the affected area. The suction from the vacuum cleaner will pull the fibers up to their normal height.

This simple process should remove even the deepest divots from your carpet or rug. If you find that you need additional help to make your carpets look brand new, give Five Step a call at 828.237.3237 or drop us a line today. We offer a full range of effective, sustainable, and friendly floor cleaning services, and we love nothing more than making our customers happy!

How to Clean a Velvet Couch

May 8, 2019/in Uncategorized /by Star

Velvet upholstered furniture is beautiful and luxurious, but this upholstery can be one of the trickiest types to clean. Stains don’t only sit on the surface of the velvet, they also coat the individual fibers and seep into the backing, causing quite a mess! So how do you clean a velvet couch, chair, or ottoman?

Know what type of velvet you are dealing with:

If your couch is upholstered in synthetic velvet (or velveteen), you should be able to clean it yourself without too much trouble. If, however, the velvet is made from cotton, silk, or wool, you’ll probably want to call in an expert. Cotton velvet is especially finicky, and the fibers can bunch and kink when they come into contact with soap, water, or cleaning solutions.

To get stains out of synthetic velvets:

Clean the fabric as soon as possible after staining occurs. Do not allow the stain to dry on its own, as it will set into the fabric and become much harder to clean. With a clean cloth or towel, gently press the stain to absorb any moisture and wipe away any loose debris. Prepare a mixture of lukewarm water and dish soap, and apply the suds to the stain. Rinse by dabbing with a damp, soap-free cloth. Allow the velvet to dry and then brush it carefully.

For regular maintenance:

You can clean your velvet upholstery with a furniture brush to remove dirt, lint, and fuzz. Vacuum regularly with the furniture attachment on your vacuum cleaner. Velveteen can be safely steam cleaned. For cotton, silk, or wool velvet, check the manufacturer’s cleaning instructions.

If you’re not sure whether your upholstery is synthetic velveteen or natural fiber velvet, you’re likely better off calling a professional upholstery cleaning service to handle the job. If you live in the Asheville, NC area, we would be happy to help you with your velvet couch, chair, or other furniture. Give us a call at 828.237.3237 or drop us a line for an estimate today. We look forward to hearing from you!

Where Can I Take an Area Rug to be Cleaned?

April 25, 2019/in Rug Cleaning /by Star

Want to know where you can take an area rug to be cleaned? You have two options. You can either try to DIY it, or you can call in a professional.

We wrote a post some time back on the pros and cons of do-it-yourself rug and carpet cleaning. You should be able to safely go this route as long as your area rug is made with synthetic fibers, is not a fine oriental or Persian rug, and does not have excessive staining or contamination with pet waste.

If any of the above warnings apply to your rug, or if you just don’t want to mess with renting a rug cleaner and doing it yourself, you’ll want to hire an expert.

Professional rug cleaning services are available in most locations. Sometimes dry cleaners offer a drop off rug cleaning service, as well.

Of course, if you live in the Asheville, NC area, Five Step Carpet Care is your best option for competent and friendly rug cleaning services. We clean area rugs, fine rugs, and oriental rugs in our Asheville facilities, and you can either drop off your rugs or take advantage of our convenient pick-up and drop-off service.

To see the quality of our work, check out some of our before and after photos.

You can also check the website for current pricing.

And you can always get in touch by calling us at 828.237.3237 or dropping us a line via our contact form.

Can You Wash Scotch Guarded Fabric?

April 4, 2019/in Upholstery Cleaning /by Star

Do you have a Scotch Guarded sofa or chair that needs spot treatment?

Many couches and chairs come from the factory already treated with a product called Scotchgard. (You can also apply a Scotchgard treatment yourself at home.)

This is really great stuff—it repels water and prevents liquids from absorbing into the upholstery fabric, reducing the likelihood of a tough stain.

Once a piece of furniture is “Scotchgarded”, it will rarely need cleaning beyond occasional vacuuming to take care of crumbs, pet hair and dander, and dirt and dust. When spills occur, you can usually clean them just by blotting with a paper towel if you get to them quickly enough. Blot until no more dampness comes up on your paper towel.

The way the product works is that it slows the absorption of fluids into the fabric. It doesn’t stop absorption completely. So if you clean it up immediately, you’re golden. But if don’t catch a spill in time, you likely will have a stain to deal with.

If you do miss that magic window of time and end up with a tough stain on your Scotchgarded couch, there are a couple of things you can do.

Our advice? Call a reputable upholstery cleaner. It’s not expensive, and you’re pretty much guaranteed to get the stain out if you hire a professional. Plus, even Scotchgarded fabrics can benefit from occasional deep cleaning. Fabric treatments like Scotchgard only work to prevent tough stains. They don’t do anything about odors or ground-in particulates from regular wear and tear.

But if you’re in a do-it-yourself mood, do yourself a favor before you attempt to clean it and check the manufacturer’s label on the piece of furniture. The cleaning instructions will tell you what types of cleaning products are safe for your couch or chair. They are written in cryptic code, but here’s a handy guide:

“S” means solvent-based cleaners are safe. Try rubbing alcohol.

“W” means you must use a water-based cleaner in order to avoid damaging the upholstery. Use a bit of dish soap mixed with water.

“W-S” means you can use either solvents or water-based cleaners.

“X” means don’t use any cleaners; only vacuum.

If all that sounds too complicated, take our advice and call in an expert. If you live in the Asheville, NC area, we would be happy to help you with your Scotchgarded upholstery cleaning needs. Call Five Step at (828) 237-3237 or drop us a line, and we’ll get back to you quickly!

Take a Look at These Customer Reviews!

March 13, 2019/in Reviews /by Scott Finney

We love when customers review our service! And lately the five star reviews have been rolling in. It makes us feel proud that we’ve helped so many homeowners and business owners in the Asheville area with their carpet, rug, hardwood, upholstery, and tile cleaning needs. So check out these recent reviews from Google to see what customers are saying about Five Step Carpet Care!

We want you to be our happy customer, too! If you live in the Asheville, NC area and need professional carpet, rug, upholstery, hardwood, or tile cleaning at competitive prices, give us a call at 828.237.3237 or drop us a line today!

Tile and Slate Cleaning in Hendersonville, NC

February 25, 2019/in Tile and Slate /by Scott Finney

Five Step is Hendersonville’s top source for tile and slate cleaning!

Tile floors are beautiful and durable, but even with regular cleanings, they can start to look dull and dirty in a well lived-in home. The tiles lose their gleam and the grout gets stained and dingy, just from normal everyday wear and tear. Bathroom tile gets covered with soap scum or even mildew, and slate floors can take on an aged look.

Periodic deep cleaning is necessary to keep your tile and slate looking clean and new, but doing the work yourself can leave you with bloody knuckles and aching knees. Not to mention that it can take a lot of time without specialized equipment!

Instead of subjecting yourself to that kind of punishment, give Five Step a call! Our professional crew will make your tile shine and your grout gleam.

We can tackle any surface, including:

Bathrooms- tubs, showers, and floors
Kitchens- floors, backsplashes, counters, and walls
Outdoor areas- terraces, decks, patios, pool areas
Traffic areas- foyers, hallways, and staircases.

And of course, our cleaning process is green, non-toxic, and sustainable. We conserve our precious waterways by using just a fraction of the water resources our competitors use. Just one more reason to choose Five Step!

If you have tile or slate in your home that needs some TLC, drop us a line today or give us a call at 828.237.3237. You’ll be glad you did!

Cats on Roombas!

February 20, 2019/in Just For Fun /by Scott Finney

We interrupt your regularly scheduled super-serious carpet and floor cleaning content to present this adorable video compilation of CATS ON ROOMBAS!

(Just for fun!)

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming.

😉

BEST of the Five Step Blog!

February 4, 2019/in Best of the Blog /by Scott Finney

Hello readers! This week we thought we’d do a round-up of all the best posts we’ve published on the blog over the past year or so. From hardwood floor cleaning myths, to bad carpet advice, to advice on vacuum cleaners, there’s a lot of information here! And if you scroll to the end of the post, you’ll find a funny satire piece, just for fun.

So without further ado, here are ten of the BEST posts from the Five Step Carpet Care blog!